Vitamin plant worker killed when metal drum explodes

Police say a worker at a Hauppauge plant that manufactures nutritional supplements was killed when a metal drum exploded.

Suffolk County police say the fatal accident happened shortly before noon Friday at Bactolac Pharmaceutical, located at 330 Oser Ave., Hauppauge. The company purchased the property in 2015 for $8.2 million and renovated the 92,000-square-foot building with the assistance of tax breaks from the Suffolk County Industrial Development Agency.

They say Sergio Escobar was cutting a metal drum with a grinder when the drum exploded and struck him. The 59-year-old Escobar was taken to Southside Hospital in Bay Shore, where he was pronounced dead.

Executives at Bactolac Pharmaceutical have not yet responded to a request for comment. The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration has been notified.